Better After

Fence-sitter

When Better After reader Jeanie discovered this headboard and picket fence at the local Goodwill, she automatically assumed they went together and bought them both.

I can’t say that the same thought would have occurred to me. I would have been like, “Cool, a headboard. I will paint this and make … a painted headboard! And perhaps I can take this fence and use it as … a very small fence!”

But she saw possibility in the pieces, and assembled them into …

Only the cutest garden bench you ever did see. Well done Jeanie! I am appreciatively clapping at my computer screen right now.

If I haven’t quenched your thirst for headboard makeovers, I’ve got a few more here, here, here, and here, and also this one that I forced my brother to make for me.

February 18, 2015 By Lindsey @ Better After

9 In bathroom/ miscellaneous

Take The Floor

So yesterday I mentioned we were in the throes of ripping out our flooring, which made a few people ask “Hey, didn’t you just build that house? What gives?”

It’s true, we did just build our house less than a year ago. And when I say ‘we’ I don’t mean ‘we’ because ‘we’ are not nearly handy enough to build a house. We went through a builder, and if you’ve ever done the same, you’ll know that some upgrades (like flooring) come RIDICULOUSLY overpriced. I’m talking over three times what it would cost to hire it out ourselves.

We even asked the builder not to put any flooring in at all, but yeah right. They don’t work that way. So we opted for the cheapest possible floors, knowing full well that they would be coming out as soon as we got a chance to put in what we really wanted.

It’s a hugebungous pain to do it this way. But it will all be worth it, I’m sure of it. I think. I’m pretty sure. Ask me in two weeks, when we have floors again.

And now – to paraphrase Jay-Z – If you’ve got flooring problems, I feel bad for you son, I’ve got 99 problems, but a floor ain’t one (because I don’t currently have floors).

Here is one solution to a floor you hate, paint it! Suzan at Simply Vintageous stenciled her entire floor, and the results are eye-popping! I like that she kept the rest of her furniture simple and white to not compete with the pattern.

Karen was dead-set on reviving her bathroom with a next-to-nothing budget. She wanted a weathered wood floor, so she simply painted one right on the surface of the sub-floor! Check out her technique on her blog Redoux Interiors, she walks you through all the steps.

Yep, that’s just paint!

Even though she dreams of someday gutting this teensy bathroom, Julia is in the “work-with-what-you-got” phase. And what she’s got is an unattached piece of linoleum that serves as both her bathroom floor and a cover to hide the trap-door to the crawl-space that lies underneath.

So she jazzed it up in the meantime with a funky design that she likes so much, it is also the header of her blog: Just Something I Whipped Up! Super cute.

February 17, 2015 By Lindsey @ Better After

11 In kitchen/dining

Simple as Pi. (Soooo, not that simple).

Hello Monday! Hope you had an awesome weekend, full of love and chocolate. Last week was a whirlwind here, we started pulling up all of our flooring downstairs to get ready to install new floors (more on that madness later), I gave my bathroom a mini-makeover because I couldn’t handle the disaster downstairs (more on that later too), we had family come to town, and my sweet daughter broke her arm in two places. (She’s feeling better already). Phew. Is it the weekend yet? Oh, wait.

We thought tearing out the flooring would be a simple job, but we quickly learned that removing tile is THE BIGGEST PAIN IN THE BUTT of all time. Don’t ever do it. Just move.

Luckily Laura already had some good flooring going on in this old kitchen, even though it looks different in the pictures due to lighting. All she had to do was paint! Simple enough!

Hahaaaaaa! Just kidding. Nothing is ever that simple. She also added new countertops, backsplash, appliances, lighting and hardware, and my favorite part, glass cabinet doors. All the look of open shelving with none of the dust!

Beautiful job. It was all worth it in the end. That’s what I keep telling myself as I wade through tile-rubble up to my knees all day long.

See more of Laura’s kitchen at The Ironstone Nest.

February 16, 2015 By Lindsey @ Better After

13 In desks/hutches/buffets

Thinking Pink, Seeing Red

If you’re a wood purist, hide your eyes, because (spoiler-alert) this desk gets painted. But before you let out a snort of disapproval, let’s take a good look at it first. See the scalloped edges? The petite little drawers? The elegant curves? It was just begging to be re-imagined as a little girl’s desk.

I know my daughter would shriek with glee if she discovered the after version in her bedroom, the before version, not so much. She would probably do her best to give a faint smile. She’s nice like that. She tasted some frosting I made yesterday, then spit it out and said “YUCK!” But then she realized she might have hurt my feelings, so she quickly said “I wasn’t talking about the frosting, I was talking about … uh … this potholder. It’s dirty. See that spot? Yuck! Dirty potholder! Your frosting isn’t yuck.”

What a diplomat. (The frosting was yuck).

From Asia at Under a Creative Spell.

And hey, since it’s Valentine’s Day tomorrow, let’s add a little red to the pink and make it a theme and pretend that I did it on purpose!

Jacqui at Porta Verde Studio updated this nondescript buffet with a new set of handle much more suited to the piece and a little romantic red.

I’d actually call it more of a rustic red. A romantic, rusty, rustic, red. I’d call it: Rusty Romance. When are they going to hire me to come up with paint color names already?

Happy weekend and happy love day!

February 13, 2015 By Lindsey @ Better After

8 In kitchen/dining

Tackle Monster

A few weeks ago we played “Spot the Differences” with Sherry’s living room makeover. But she didn’t stop at her living room, she tackled this awkward wall in her kitchen while she was at it. People like Sherry are a mystery to me. I can’t seem to make myself tackle a project that requires more than two steps at this point in my life. I blame the adorable baby-shaped barnacle that spends 99% of his day stuck to my side.

He’s actually taking a nap right now, so maybe I’ll wrap this up and go try and make something. I just cleaned the garage out and I’m feeling crafty. Sherry inspires me!

I absolutely love how she opened up this crowded nook, such a huge improvement! See more at Design Indulgence.

February 12, 2015 By Lindsey @ Better After

10 In living room

Black Out To Blend In

Oh, awkward TV, what are we going to do with you? There’s just no hiding that big black eye smack-dab in the middle of the wall. We could stuff you in an armoire … but that negates the point of having a flat-screen. Hmmm. We could stop watching TV altogether … but how would we know what Gwen Stefani wore on The Voice? No no, there has to be a better way.

I know! We could paint the entire wall black! You would totally blend in! We could add some shelves on either side, and some cool lights above; the whole thing would look awesome. I think we can even get the thermostat in on this blending-in thing. Let’s do it.

From Kristen at Team Fuest.